2018 Dodge Durango problems & reliability
229 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2018 Dodge Durango, alongside 5 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
5 complaints report injuries (5 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2018 Dodge Durango vehicles were involved in 47 fatal crashes with 14 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 86 | 38% |
| Exterior Lighting | 55 | 24% |
| Unknown OR Other | 32 | 14% |
| Engine | 26 | 11% |
| Seats | 21 | 9% |
| Service Brakes | 21 | 9% |
| Power Train | 13 | 6% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 11 | 5% |
| Air Bags | 10 | 4% |
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 7 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 25,000 miles (middle 50% between 11,482 and 42,000 miles), based on 83 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Back to back error codes P0300 P0108 P1404 P0172 Rough running engine. Very strong smell of fuel at two different times while driving. Vehicle not responding to gas pedal while driving on highway. Repairs at thousands of dollars.”
Engine · filed Aug 4, 2026
“The contact owns a 2018 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that a section of the rear light was inoperable. The passenger’s side light was inoperable. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed, and determined that the tail light needed to be replaced…”
Exterior Lighting · filed Jul 10, 2026
“The passenger side active headrest restraint deployed at 3mph in a parking lot. There had been a safety recall for apparently my vin is not covered per dodge. [XXX] If this would have happened on the drivers side at highway speeds, it could have been deadly. The vehicle is at nyle Maxwell in Killeen and the passengers…”
Seats · filed Jun 19, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture
Engineering Analysis EA21002 · opened Sep 17, 2021 · open
- Active Head Rest Inadvertent Deployment
Preliminary Evaluation PE19014 · opened Sep 9, 2019 · closed Feb 25, 2026
Technical service bulletins
367 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2018 Dodge Durango. The 10 most recent:
Backup Camera Poor Image Quality Inspection
S2208000045 REV.D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 26, 2026
Power Liftgate Intermittently Inoperative. Will Not Open/ Close. Liftgate/Hatch Ajar Message Displayed. Rev A
S2623000041 REV.A · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 19, 2026
Outside Power Fold Rearview Mirror Noise Or Loose At Pivot. Mirror Contacts Door Window Glass In The Folded Position.
S1623000028 Rev. K · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 12, 2026
Blower Motor Makes Loud Noise
S2624000006 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 10, 2026
Prior to replacing an inoperative passive entry door handle, perform Star Online S2623000040.
9100835 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 8, 2026
Outside Power Fold Rearview Mirror Noise Or Loose At Pivot. Mirror Contacts Door Window Glass In The Folded Position.
S1623000028 REV.J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 5, 2026
Passive Entry Exterior Door Handle Inoperative When Touched To Lock And Or Unlock.
S2623000040 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 5, 2026
Power Liftgate Intermittently Inoperative. Will Not Open/ Close. Liftgate/Hatch Ajar Message Displayed.
S2623000041 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 5, 2026
Outside Power Fold Rearview Mirror Noise Or Loose At Pivot. Mirror Contacts Door Window Glass In The Folded Position.
S1623000028 REV.I · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 29, 2026
COOLER - ENGINE OIL
112191 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 19, 2026
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2018 Dodge Durango has 5 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2018 Dodge Durango?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 25,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.